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innobiz Enactus

Take advantage of the experiential-learning opportunities built into many programs.

INNOBIZ ENACTUS.

The Agribusiness project is aimed at identifying and incubating subsistence farmers, helping them transition to small scale farming by first improving their traditional farming techniques. The Agri-Business project was established in Noodsberg, North of KwaZulu-Natal. It is focused on identifying and incubating subsistence farmers by helping them transition to small scale farming. On our first encounter with the farmers in 2017, they shared their challenges with the team. Who then conducted a deep needs assessment to determine the roots of the challenges? The exercise revealed that in these parts of rural KZN, the communities are struggling with poor soil quality, fluctuating weather patterns and long-distance travel to the market to buy seedlings.

The cost of fertilizers also hampered their harvest. Due to the climate in these areas, they could not grow some products (e.g. tomatoes, lettuce, etc.) all year round. The team designed a greenhouse by utilizing recycled 2-litre plastic bottles and incorporated vertical farming structures inside these greenhouses which allows for reduced water to be used for watering the crops. The team also taught the farmers to concentrate on growing greenhouses seedlings and ensuring that seedlings are stronger before planting them on the fields. To improve the soil quality, the farmers were taught how to make and use bio compost.

The team-taught farmers the agricultural method, crop maximization pricing and train the trainer. Also, about the value of organic farming as this is their competitive advantage when selling into the market.

The Finiks Solutions project presents an exciting approach of recycling used soap into toilet bowl disinfectant. While working with different schools across KwaZulu-Natal on a nutrition project, the Enactus team realised that hygiene is a critical issue that is not given much attention in most schools. UNICEF estimates that 1.4 million children a year die from diseases such as typhoid and cholera, diseases that are easily preventable with better hygiene. Ironically, millions of bars of soap are being discarded everyday by the hotel industry. To promote hygiene in both primary and secondary level, the team started the Finiks Solutions project.

The team collects guest used soap from hotels in and around Durban to make a toilet bowl disinfectant. The project has a production facility at the DUT ML Sultan campus where the production staff work together with students to produce the products of this project. The team has recently added two new product lines, dishwashing liquid and a multipurpose cleaner which are not made from the discarded soap. The products are sold to schools, churches, and the general public under the brand name finiks.

Imbewu: The Seed is an umbrella project that houses 3 business units under its banner, the Melokuhle Sewing Co-operative, Vinso Art and Beadwork. The business units are outlined below:

This project is based in an area called Chibini on the northern side of KwaZulu-Natal. Chibini is an isolated community where women have little to no opportunities for financial freedom, thus, they rely on their children’ social grant pay out for survival. In this community, the Enactus team identified 8 unemployed women with sewing skills but lacked the capital required to make their sewing into a business.

The team formed them into one sewing cooperative and sourced funding for the required equipment and materials. The Enactus team is the incubator of this business and is guided by business experts. They have provided the 8 beneficiaries of this project with business skills and they constantly monitor the project for growth and maximum impact. These women sew products ranging from school uniforms, church uniforms, traditional wedding attires etc.

Vinso Art is a project that embraces street fashion. We are working with two young creatives from Durban who uses both new and recycled fabric to create funky and fashionable clothes for everyday wear. Vinso Art aims to help people embrace their cultural identity in modern times. The fashionable products produced help the customer feel more confident and prouder of their origin and identity.

The Umlilo project recycles discarded plastics to make building materials, discouraging the discarding of plastic by creating value from the discarded plastics. This project is based in Imbali. Imbali is part of the Underberg area located 15km from the capital city of the province, Pietermaritzburg. It is also home to our campus that is in the Imbali township of Pietermaritzburg. As home to the largest poor skilled labour for the Pietermaritzburg’s economy, it also adds to the burden of waste disposal.

Through our research we discovered that plastic can be converted into modern strong building blocks, through integrating sand synchronized with plastic, the final phase would involve the shaping of the prototype into a shape we want. This unconventional method is efficient and cost-effective.

The final building product, for example, we want to create modular bricks. We have seen an exponential increase in the deterioration of the environment and rise in pollution-based diseases, we are planning on reducing these and content platform where we will create real actual change our community.

In traditional Zulu culture, beadwork was used as a form of communication. Intricately, hand-crafted beads were used to tell stories of love and intent of marriage, family and culture. This project comprise of talented South African black women from KwaMashu, a township prominent for the arts situated 12km North of Durban who manufactures hand-crafted beadwork. Founded by individual bead workers who saw the need to collaborate their skills and contributions with one another to grow the beadwork industry and preserve the legacy, culture and create longevity of the “Zulu Love Letter”. The project’s primary goal is to share with the world, the rich South African cultural diversity and our traditions through beadwork with a hint of opulent fashion.

Innobiz Social Entrepreneurship Rapid Incubator

  • Maker Space Services

1. Development of prototypes for student and community members

2. 3D printing

3. Signage manufacturing

4. Technical Trainings 

5. Coding and programming

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